


An Ordinary Boy

by AnnaOnTheMoon



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Childhood, Family, Gen, Hiding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-26
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 14:23:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15439014
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaOnTheMoon/pseuds/AnnaOnTheMoon
Summary: Evan Prince was your normal, average, American boy...to all of his friends and teachers. Pre-Hogwarts





	An Ordinary Boy

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published October 2016.

Ten-year-old Evan Prince bit into his peanut butter and jelly sandwich and frowned. Evan's friend Jody noticed and put down her sandwich before asking, "Hey Ev, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just thinking about how much I'm going to miss peanut butter and jelly sandwiches next year."

"Oh. Don't they have peanut butter and jelly in England? Why do you have to go?"

"No. And have to. Dad said the University only hired him for five years and he wants me to go to the same secondary school he, my mum, and my birth dad went to."

"What's a secondary school?" asked another one of Evan's friends through a mouthful of sandwich.

"It's like a middle and high school in the same building. Kids from age 11-17 go there."

"Wow, cool," Mark said though yet another mouthful. "And it's a castle? Like with suits of armour and everything?"

"That's what Dad said. He said it's a very old school in Scotland and very hard to get into. My parents had my name down for it as soon as I was born."

"Awesome! Can we visit?" This time, it was Natalie who asked the question. Natalie was Evan's best friend and he would miss her the most.

"I dunno. Probably not while I'm at school, but maybe next summer?" Evan balled up his brown paper bag. "Are you guys ready to go outside? I want to play on the monkey bars!" His friends all nodded as their chairs scraped against the floor and they all got up to make their way out onto the playground.

Evan's friends sure did ask a lot of questions. In the four and a half years they knew Evan, they learned more about him than he had about any of them. They knew he was from England and his dad was actually his step-dad. He told them his dad died in an IRA bombing attack, which left his mother paralysed and him with barely a scratch except for a scar on his face. Evan's step-dad was his mum's best friend from childhood and he took care of Evan while his mum was recovering. It took his mum almost an entire year to be able to leave the special hospital she was at, and then only if she had constant care at home. Stephen, Evan's step-dad, took care of all the arrangements and the three of them moved into a small bungalow when Evan was two and a half. A few months later, his mum married Stephen and Stephen officially became Evan's step-dad. His mum had a lot of complications due to the accident and when Evan was five, she passed away in her sleep. Stephen and Evan were devastated and Stephen didn't want to stay in their house anymore. Stephen was a renowned chemist and had continued to work in a small outbuilding converted to a lab while he stayed at home taking care of Evan's mother. His work was so good; he was offered a five-year contract at a prestigious university in Pennsylvania in their research department. Evan and Stephen packed up and moved across the pond to a small suburb and used some of the money left by Evan's birth parents to secure him a place at a local private school. Most of the children already knew each other from Kindergarten, but they readily accepted Evan into their fold. His British accent faded after a few months, so by the time he turned 10, he sounded just as American as the rest of his classmates.

Natalie's mom picked up Natalie and Evan from school that day and took them to their Karate lesson. After, she decided to take them to McDonald's for a treat. Both children ordered a Happy Meal and were playing with the toys when Natalie dragged her sleeve though the puddle of ketchup.

"Mommy, I ruined it! My pretty white Karate robe is ruined!" Natalie started to cry as her mom reached over and blotted at the ketchup stain with a napkin.

"My dad can fix it!" exclaimed Evan. Evan had never had an item of clothing ruined in his entire life. His step-dad had always been able to repair holes and stains and the only time Evan needed to throw away clothing was if he outgrew it, and even then, sometimes his clothing managed to fit him for several years. He still had his favourite pair of pyjamas from when he was 5, despite the fact that he was now nearly 11.

"Are you sure, Evan? I know your father creates some amazing chemicals, but I doubt he can get out a ketchup stain," Natalie's mom said, raising her eyebrows.

"He can! He can! Just ask him!"

"If you two are finished, let's go and see if Mr Prince has anything in his special chem lab."

Evan threw open the front door to his house. "Dad? Dad? I'm home! I have Natalie and her mom with me. I told them you could get out a ketchup stain! Daaad!" Evan dropped his backpack by the front door and ran down the hallway as he yelled, stopping by the basement door. The light above the door was turned on, and Evan knew that meant no one was allowed downstairs as Stephen was in the middle of an experiment. Evan pressed the intercom button next to the door instead.

"Yes?" The monotone voice of his step-father crackled through the speaker.

"Dad, did you hear me? Natalie and her mom are -"

"Yes. The entire neighbourhood heard you. I will be up in a moment. Wait in the kitchen."

Rolling his eyes at his friend, Evan led the way into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and took out a bottle of juice, offering some to Natalie before pouring himself a glass. Evan heard the click of the basement door as Stephen exited the basement, shut the door again, pressed a few buttons on the lock pad and entered the kitchen.

"What can I help you with?"

Natalie held out her Karate robe. "I spilled ketchup on it, Mr Prince. Evan said you could fix it," Natalie said, holding her robe out to Stephen.

Stephen raised his eyebrows at his step-son. "He did, did he?" Stephen reached out for the robe, examining it. "Yes, I think I have just the chemical. Wait here." Stephen disappeared around the corner towards the laundry room for the briefest of moments, and then came back into the kitchen holding a clean Karate robe.

"Oh, Mr Prince! It's gone! Just like magic!" Stephen tried to hide his smirk as Natalie made her exclamations, but Evan laughed.

"Thank you Stephen. I treated the kids to a Happy Meal after Karate, so Evan's full of French fries and a cheeseburger," Natalie's mom, Karen, saw Stephen fumbling for his wallet in his pocket, "No need to pay me back. My treat."

"Thank you. Evan, say goodbye to Natalie."

"Bye Nat...hey dad, can we order pizza?" Stephen rolled his eyes at Karen as she ushered Natalie out of the kitchen.

As soon as the door had shut behind them, Stephen turned to Evan. "What was the meaning of this? You know we aren't supposed to use magic in front of Muggles!"

"I...I'm sorry Dad. I wasn't thinking." Evan hung his head.

"Too right you weren't. Don't let it happen again. Now, where's that pizza menu?"

Evan looked around his bedroom and sighed. It was the second week in July and school had been out for over a month. Evan was spending lots of time with his friends, but as his 11th birthday loomed closer and closer, so did their move back to England. Evan had been slowly packing up his bedroom and one side of his room was filled with half full boxes, and a large roll of bubble wrap. All of his electronics were being left behind since they wouldn't work in England and Evan was especially sad to have to give up his super Nintendo and Gameboy. His step-dad was in the basement lab, carefully packing up vials of coloured liquid into wooden crates so they wouldn't break on the journey. Glass beakers and test tubes were carefully wrapped in layers of bubble wrap before being placed into their crate and tape was carefully wound around the corks to keep all of the liquid inside. A large shipping container was dropped off on their driveway a week before Evan's birthday. They wouldn't see anything from the container until Christmas, or at least, that's what Natalie's mom told him. Evan of course, knew better and knew that the container was for show only. The container would be instantly transported to their new home in England, although Evan would only be in it for a month before starting school.

Stephen had secured a teaching position at Evan's school, much to the amusement of Stephen's friends who kept telling him that teaching high school Chemistry was a step down after everything he had done. But the school Evan was going to attend was a boarding school, and Stephen wanted to remain close to him. Working at the school ensured that while he wouldn't be able to share quarters with his son, he would see him daily.

It was the morning of Evan's 11th birthday and both he and his step-dad were watching the sky. Suddenly, as if appearing out of thin air, a white owl approached the duo. The owl flew closer and closer and landed on the railing of the front porch and held out her leg towards Evan. A letter written on thick parchment and sealed with a wax seal was tied to her leg. Evan offered the owl a bit of his bacon and she accepted it before flying off into a nearby tree. Evan watched the bird tuck her head under her wing and go to sleep before looking at the envelope:

Mr. H J Potter-Snape

AKA Mr. E J Prince

23 Primrose Avenue

Ardmore, Pennsylvania

United States of America

Evan sighed and turned to the only man he ever knew as a father, potions master and future Hogwart's potion teacher Severus Snape. "I guess the secret is out…."


End file.
